Erat-Legwand-DumontInjury, injury, and can you say injury
Sullivan-Arnott-RadulovI love this line, not sure Arnott is the best center for those jackrabbits, I would swap Arnott down to line three and bring Bonk up to line 2.
Gelinas-Bonk-OrtmeyerNice grind line, Bonk is an underrated scorer. Its also cool to call a line the Bonk's adventure line.
Hordichuk-Nichol-TootooMore pi$$ and vinegar, but every team needs it.

Zidlicky-HamhuisGood unit, neither will be in the top pair at the end of the year
Suter-deVriesBut Ryan Suter will, De Vries is a nice d-man too
Weber-KleinFuture Scott Stevens type in Weber, will pair nice with Suter in the #1 unit

MasonCan he really be a number one?
Rinne/EllisBecause I don't believe in either of these guys.

That's not a bad team. Two good scoring lines, a really solid checking line, and an adequate 4th line. Defense is loaded with talent.

While defense wins championship, you still need to score, and if that top line falters, I don't know if there is enough to carry the team without it.

Compare that with:

Zetterberg-Datsyuk-SamuelssonSecond best passer in Datsyuk with a cold blooded scorer in Zetterberg
Holmstrom-Hudler-ClearyHolmstrom=Ryan Smyth, We have been waiting for Jiri Hudler to duplicate his European stats, this could be the year, and Dan Cleary was good enough to be a top ten draft pick and is still a developing power forward.
Maltby-Draper-DrakeNot much more than a grind line here, but Kris Draper can score
Ellis-Filppula-GrigorenkoValterri Filpulla is an offensive machine in the making, but he doesn't have much help on his wings. Don't rule out a trade, I hear Zherdev can be had for Jimmy Howard.

Lidstrom-RafalskiBest defenseman in the Western Conference, meet the best defenseman in the Eastern Conference
Ference-KronwallIts unfair for a team to have a second pair this good. A guy they talked about as the next Scott Stevens in Ference (unlikely at this point) paired with the next Lidstrom (also not likely, but pretty close)
Lilja-CheliosChelios is 146 years old or something, but he can still play, I don't know much about Lilja, and since I follow the Euro-leagues, that should tell you what you need to know. In all fairness, I didn't think much of Henrik Lundqvist either, so I've been wrong.

HasekOne of the best when healthy.
NogoodThis proves to me that you are still a novice when it comes to hockey analysis. Chris Osgood was goaltender on two Stanley Cup winners and was the only thing that kept the Islanders from losing 60 games a season in the days of Mad Mike. Maybe he isn't the next Patrick Roy, but step off my boy!

Yeah, Detroit's top two forwards are better than Nashville's top two (although Nashville has both Erat and Radulov, who have the talent and potential to make Datsuck and Iron Lung look like chopped liver). Someone ate their Wheaties this morning. Pavel Datsyuk is a #1 centerman in the NHL who can score goals or pass, making him much more dangerous than Peter Forsberg, who preferrs to pass. Henrik Zetterberg is entering his prime and is one of the most cold-blooded snipers out there.

Yeah, Detroit's top two defensemen are better than Nashville's top two (though Zidlicky remains one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL).

Detroit's top two are better than any tandem in the NHL, but if they are smart they will split Lidstrom and Rafalski up because Ference and Kronwall are both first pairing quality defenders.

And yeah, Detroit's starter is probably better than Nashville's.... and Detroit's backup is definitely better than Nashville's starter.

But Nashville absolutely OBLITERATES Detroit as far as depth is concerned. That isn't even in question.

We'll see how things play out over the course of a season, but I wouldn't count Nashville out of the division title talks, as weird as that sounds.

They can win the division but they won't do anything in the playoffs, not this year, not without Kariya.